Research Reflections, Competencies, and Products

Fall 2005 and Spring 2006

One of my first classes, Research on Teaching, gave me an opportunity to write a study by study literature review leading to a research proposal. This proposal was further refined in Problems and Methods in Education Research and provided experience in the following:

writing a humans subjects proposal
writing two separate methods sections which match two possible research designs for the research proposal--one qualitative and one quantitative (quasi experimental)

The studies set up an exploration of how teacher generated action research influences teacher efficacy.

Two projects associated with Ways of Knowing and Issues and Trends in Literacy Research were written during the spring of 2006. These articles further explore the viability of action research as a scholarly methodology and the methods associated with it. The first review, Action Research: The Mighty Oak, reviews the history of action research. The second project, Action Research: Methodology, Method, and Professional Development, is an integrative literature review bringing teacher development and action research together.

Developing Competencies

Projects	Literature Review	Forming Questions	HSRB	Research Design	Data Collection	Data Analysis	Conclusions and Implications
The Influence of Teacher Inquiry on Teacher Efficacy	Study by Study
The Influence of Teacher Inquiry on Teacher Efficacy and Collective Efficacy (Quantitative)				Quasi-experimental
The Influence of Teacher Inquiry on Teacher Efficacy and Collective Efficacy (Qualitative)				Grounded Theory
Action Research: Methodology, Method, and Professional Development	Integrative

Competencies to be Developed

Design:

Quantitative (Quasi-experimental, Correlational)
Qualitative (Grounded Theory)
Mixed Methods

Data Collection:

Quantitative (Scales, Pre/Post (Scores), Surveys)
Qualitative (interviews, Journals, Observations)

Data Analysis:

Quantitative (ANOVA, ANCOVA, Linear Regressions, Multiple Linear Regressions, Structural Equation Modeling)
Qualitative (Open Coding, Axial Coding, Selective Coding, Constant Comparative Analysis (CCA))

Conclusions and Implications

Fall 2006 and Spring/Summer 2007

Previous coursework has led me to three research projects that I hope to extend and complete during this school year. The first is a literature review concerning the relationship between oral language, meta linguistic awareness, and phonological awareness. I have written this in two parts and need to combine them into a seamless review. This review is informing a second project which is an action research study I started with a kindergarten team last year.
The study also involves a self study component that needs to be further developed. The overarching question is the following: What will happen to our teaching and learning if we collaborate in creating and analyzing authentic assessments; and how will this influence student achievement in phonological awareness and early literacy development. The goal is to bring self study, teacher learning through authentic assessment, and student achievement in phonological awareness together in a study that can be replicated and extended by others.
A project completed as a requirement in Quantitative Methods and information learned in Issues and Trends in Literacy has generated a third research goal for this year. The EDRS 811 project, Developmental Reading Assessment and the Standards of Learning Test: Linking Authentic Assessments to High Stakes Testing, used multiple regressions to determine the degree in which engagement, expression, and inferential comprehension scores on the DRA explain the achievement score on the SOL reading test. Results showed that students' engagement and motivation best predicted their scores on the Virginia Standards of Learning Test for Reading. Therefore, I am planning a research project to be conducted within a before school reading club our language arts committee started last year. The initial purpose of this group was to help students develop positive academic literacy identities. Two main research questions are the following:

Will providing students with voice and choice in literacy activities increase student motivation, engagement, and academic identity?·
Will an increase in motivation, engagement, and identity lead to increased student achievement in reading?

I would like to use surveys and interviews to determine if students feel more connected to literacy as a result of the activities we facilitate. These activities involve choice and voice and include read aloud, shared reading, Internet/periodical reading, and buddy reading. Voice will be achieved through blogging about books read. Finally, increased student achievement could be measured through quarterly writing prompts scored using rubrics (after reliability training), the Developmental Reading Assessment for Grades Three through Six, and the Virginia State Standards of Learning Reading test.
The three research projects described above align my research goals with my professional goals as a reading teacher. The work involving oral language and the development of phonological awareness and teacher collaborative learning is motivated by our desire to increase the achievement of our Latino and Hispanic students, as well as our students living in disadvantaged situations. The work with older students’ engagement and motivation is also meant to inform our teachers and increase student achievement. The ultimate goal both in research and in my profession is to participate and help facilitate a shift to a more collaborative culture focused on teaching and learning rather than teaching alone.

Developing Competencies

Projects	Literature Review	Forming Questions	HSRB	Research Design	Data Collection	Data Analysis	Conclusions and Implications
DRA and the Standards of Learning Test: Linking Authentic Assessments to High Stakes Testing				Correlational	Scores	ANOVA, Regressions
Oral Language and Phonological Awareness	Integrative
Oral Language and Literacy Acquisition	Integrative
Discovering Phonological Awareness through Ourselves and Others		Re framing Questions		Grounded Theory	Journals	Open/Axial Coding; CCA

Competencies to be Developed

Design:

Mixed Methods

Data Collection:

Quantitative (Scales, Surveys)
Qualitative (Interviews, Observations)

Data Analysis:

Quantitative (ANOVA, ANCOVA, Linear Regressions, Multiple Linear Regressions, Structural Equation Modeling)
Qualitative (Selective Coding)

Conclusions and Implications

Fall 2007-Summer 2008

The year provided opportunities to begin developing my competencies mixed methods, data collection in the form of surveys, and data analysis (quantitative and qualitative) based on survey data. I was also able to play with setting up a SEM and analyze the model using hypothetical data. I took the analysis and results from the SIP Survey to the point of graphic representation, as well. I am also learning to focus literature more efficiently in literature reviews. However, none of the projects listed provided me experience inferring conclusions and implications.

Developing Competencies

Projects	Literature Review	Forming Questions	HSRB	Research Design	Data Collection	Data Analysis	Conclusions and Implications
Choice and Voice Lead to Increased Engagement and Achievement	-		-	Mixed Mehods	Survey Interview	Survey (Quant)	-
Professional Learning Communities, Professional Development, and Student Achievement	Study by Study		-	Mixed Methods	-	-	-
Vocabulary, Syntax, Discourse, and Phonemic Awareness	-		-	Mixed Methods Validity Threats	-	-	-
School Improvement Plan Survey	-	-	-	-	Survey	Survey (Quant/Qual)	-
Group Differences in Emergent Literacy Skills	-		-	Quantitative SEM	-	SEM	-

Competencies to be Developed

Conclusions and Implications

Fall 2008 - Spring/Summer 2009

I need to take a project through the entire research process to continue refining my skills and to begin developing my ability to infer conclusions and implications. The three projects below are providing these opportunities for me.

Developing Competencies

Projects	Literature Review	Forming Questions	HSRB	Research Design	Data Collection	Data Analysis	Conclusions & Implications
Students to Students: Storybook Buddy Reading HSRB Application
Job Embedded Professional Learning for Graduate Credit
Book Blogs, Reading Engagement, and Academic Identity			-

The first two projects in the table will be informing my dissertation during the planning and proposal process.

Home